Blog Archives

March 8 - Psalm 126

2/28/2015

Psalm 126 opens with remembering the awe-some joy the Lord's people felt when their prayers were answered and their nation restored. This day I invite you to first begin your reflection with those times in your lives, and in our nation’s history, when surprisingly, amazingly, it was clear that our God inter-vened through an absolutely unexpected, joyful and miraculous event! There is passion here ... "Mouths filled with laughter and tongues singing their joy"! Can you picture this? Songs bursting with happiness - so much so that, like the woman at the well, there was such a change in demeanor and witness that the nations marveled at the great things God had done for his people.

"Restore our fortunes, Lord."
Time has passed and dry times have come upon the Israelites. Perhaps, as so often happens, the joy and exultation has become 'ho-hum' and they are back to their old ways. Dryness in their faith, and also as a nation, has caught them up into a place of despair, discouragement and apathy. Thirsty for the Lord's blessing and Presence they appeal again for deliverance and renewal that their weeping may be transformed into shouts of joy.

So like many of us! We pray and pray and suddenly beyond our wildest dreams our prayers are answered! What joy! What dancing! What thanksgiving to our God. But the days go by; life takes over and our passionate faith and wonder turns lukewarm. The blazing fire of joy becomes merely a few embers which flicker and threaten to lose their heat and reason for being.

"And the other nations said..."
In the past we were truly and without question a nation that prayed; a nation that called on the Lord; a nation that was respected among the nations. We were not banned from praying in public places. We were not ashamed to confess our faith. We were clear that, while all religions had freedom here, we were a country of faith in and under the Divine leadership of our Creator. In the present time, clouds of confusion, of apathy, of 'lukewarm' Christianity and 'whatever' thinking are slowly eroding the uniqueness and inclusiveness of the Great Commission to 'go into all the world' with the Gospel of God's love, grace, and redeeming, transforming power in Christ.

We, like the exiles, need to be on our knees pleading with our Lord to renew and revive our spirits; to fill our dryness of soul with the joy of all that God has done, is doing, and will do for us in and through our Lord and Savior. Our God weeps for the wickedness of all nations and calls us to sow the seeds of the Gospel with courage and passion that the harvest may be great. We need to really sorrow as Jesus did when he entered Jerusalem, for those who are lost and do not know the things that make for real and eternal peace. We are called to bear the precious burden of proclaiming His love 'in season and out of season'. May His Holy Spirit fill our hearts anew with a powerful, flaming passion for all people who have not heard or who have rejected His marvelous gift of redemption, reconciliation and new life.

Let us pray for opportunities to confidently and joyfully sow the seeds of the Gospel wherever we are called; that we may be beacons of hope and letters of recommendation in this world of shadows and competing ideologies. May our countenances show forth the joy of our salvation and may the grace, peace and mercy that we know in Jesus Christ go forth into all creation. Then, by the Lord's power, our sowing the Gospel with a tearful passion for souls will bring forth a great harvest and we will be filled with joy! Then and only then will other nations say again: 'What amazing things the Lord has done for them!"

- Linda Bolton

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Today pray for:
Bristol (NH) Baptist Church and their pastor Wayne Toutaint
First Baptist Church, Bristol, VT, and their interim pastor Todd Goodyear
Region Staff: Janet McFaul, Administrative Assistant

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March 7 - Psalm 125

2/28/2015

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“They who trust in the Lord…, unshakable, forever enduring.” V. 1 (NAB)

Each year the church faces new issues. People don’t come, money is down, leadership seems to be busy with their own lives. Yet the church prevails, moves on and grows in individual faith walks.

We have long passed the years of big, big numbers. Yet the strength of each church is measured in its individual members.

Take a moment and think about the person in your church who steadfastly endures.
Take a moment and think of that older person who represents a life-long call to Jesus.
Take a moment to reflect on that young person who represents the future.
Take a moment today and look internally at where you are in your life with Jesus, the Lord.

Our trust can once more be vested in our Lord - to renew each church we need to begin again to stand up for Jesus.

I think today of Katie, a little girl of five who never misses church each week. She comes, she smiles, she brightens each corner of the church. You can be the Katie of your church and everyone else will become a Katie.

Psalm 125 says “The Lord surrounds his people both now and forever.”

Believe it.
Live it.
Renew your church.

Today, let your prayer be, “Lord, renew me that I may renew another today. Amen.”

- Bruce Bishop

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Today pray for:
First Baptist Church, Bradford and their pastor Lynne Hubley
First Baptist Church, Brattleboro and their pastor Suzanne Andrews
First Baptist Church, Brentwood and their pastor John Hastings

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March 6 - Psalm 124

2/28/2015

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“Our help is in the name of the Lord,” declares the Psalmist David with confidence. “Here he was, looking back from verse 8, the climactic verse of this Psalm, to his opening declaration, “If the Lord had not been on our side….” It makes you wonder just what the outcome would have been if the Lord hadn’t been on their side.
Sometimes we don’t understand how we arrived at a certain place until we look back and recognize the path upon which we have walked. Here, David is doing just that as he reflects upon the Lord’s presence in the life of the nation. It is that recognition of the presence of the Lord that enables David to state with confidence, “Our help is in the name of the Lord.”

It is that lack of recognition of the presence of God that is plaguing our society in these days, particularly in the matter of school shootings, mall massacres and other acts of terror inflicted upon our citizenry. These are not, for the most part, acts of Islamic jihadists; rather they are acts of despair perpetrated by otherwise nor-mal, red-blooded Americans, who live their lives with an ongoing sense of hopelessness.

But these are people, children, many of them, who have never learned of God’s grace. I’m certain that if a study were conducted, it would be found that most of the perpetrators of acts of violence, from the Columbine massacre to the school shooting in Sandy Hook, never spent much time in Sunday school. They grew up lost, and the natural result of being lost is despair. And despair, feelings of hopelessness, can lead to erratic behavior. And too often we are seeing this erratic behavior being played out in violent acts, such as murder and suicide.

I’ve always found it troubling that many of these shootings involve the murder of others, then the suicide of the shooter. It is an unfortunate, recurring theme of “misery loves company.” These assassins are miserable and they seek to live out their misery and anger, however briefly, on those around them, those whom they perceive to be happier, more “with it” than they themselves.

It is unfortunate that our society has generally rejected Christian values in its attempt at political correctness. We don’t want to hurt anyone’s feelings or impose our own religious values upon others. We certainly would not want to be branded as radical, evangelical believers in a God who, in His own time, makes all things beautiful.

No, society instead insists that “I’m okay; you’re okay.” We can believe anything that we want, provided we give the other guy the same right. But where is the Christian responsibility in that? The Great Commission tells us to “Go into all the world and preach the Good News to all creation,” but we can’t even make disciples in our own neighborhoods for fear of offending someone. Too often modern churches are filled with aging people whose idea of evangelism is trying to get people to come to the next church supper.

This trend must stop. It is time to reassert a boldness in our personal ministry, to demonstrate the winsomeness that draws people to Christ.

School shootings and other acts of violence will continue until we, as Christians, do our part to turn despair into joy by proclaiming, over and over again: “Our help is in the name of the Lord, the Maker of Heaven and earth.” Maybe then, just maybe, some of these children of despair and hopelessness will lay down their weapons and understand that God is with them as well.

- James Barnes

Click Here for Psalm 124

Today pray for:
First Baptist Church, Berlin and their pastor Dean Stiles
Crossroads Community Church, Bow and their pastor Rick Huntley
Region Staff: Abraham Gross, Assistant to the Region Minister for Pastoral Stability and Networking

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March 5 - Psalm 123

2/28/2015

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When I read this Psalm, the Holy Spirit spoke to me about only the first verse with one word focused up-on - UP! All night I kept thinking, why is the Holy Spirit wanting me to focus on the very simple two letter word – UP? When I taught first graders to read, that was one of the first words they learned to read – UP. Early the next morning, I received a Holy Spirit revelation! The importance of looking up and walking assertively in dangerous, fearful environments came loud and clear to me. When I lived in Fairfax County, Virginia, which is right next to Washington, DC, I was blessed forever with Marsha, a Christian sister. She was the top administrator in the Fairfax County Police Training. Her lasting advice was if one walks assertively and looks up with one’s eyes towards Heaven, then that one person will be safe and not a victim.

Over the years I put this wisdom to practice. In Franklin we invited into our home twenty-five homeless souls over a four year time span. Some of them were for only a few days. One dad, who had been saved during his prison time, and his three sons lived with us a whole year. In Belmont I have managed homeless transitional housing units and even lived among them. In Franklin I lived alone in a drug infected neighborhood and my friends were worried about my safety. Last year we traveled in our car for thirty-eight days across the USA visiting even in cities such as Los Angeles, California and Albuquerque, New Mexico. I have practiced always what Marsha advised me and prayed. I have always been safe in all of these tough environments!

Earlier this winter I had a revelation about “Laura”, my “adopted” Christian granddaughter. (I have not actually adopted her legally, but anyone I adopt has a special place in my heart.) She is a youth leader in 4-H community services projects, works part-time at a grocery store and is on a swimming team. Laura is an intelligent high school senior who is in the midst of her college selection process. She is a very attractive, tall lady who walks and moves like she is a victim. Presently, Laura is receiving some verbal attacks and being bullied by other teenage girls. These devil-inspired girls are probably jealous that Laura is so cute and bright! Recently, her self-esteem has been growing as her lifetime dream came true! She bought her own horse. Then God sent Christians to build a fence and a barn next to her family home. It is looking good that she will take to college her seventeen hands tall horse. If I could give her a bit of advice it would be to not slump but walk with her eyes looking to Jesus in Heaven and putting on His Shield of Faith (Ephesians 6) to withstand the fiery darts of the devil. Before she leaves for college, I pray she learns and practices these Jesus-inspired strategies.

I pray that whenever one of us Christians encounters a fearful situation that we will look to Heaven and put on the whole Armor of God to show how fearless we can be in difficult places.

- Bonnie-Linda Vlk

Click Here for Psalm 123

Today pray for:
First Baptist Church, Bellows Falls and their pastors Steve and Terri Walton
First Baptist Church, Belmont and their pastor Jim Smith
First Baptist Church, Bennington and their interim pastor Tom Hiltsley

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March 4 - Psalm 122

2/28/2015

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When I read Psalm 122 in preparation for this meditative exercise, the phrase, “pray for the peace of Jerusalem” captured my attention. My initial thought was, “Yes, and many other places.” I made a random, and without too much thought, list of areas of conflict in our world and came up with a collection of over a dozen. If the church has been expected to continue the message of “the Prince of Peace”, and having been around for two thousand years, it doesn’t seem to have had much of an impact in this regard.

I recall being in a church school class as a youth in which the teacher was commenting on Jesus as the “Prince of Peace”. She indicated that this did not necessarily refer to world peace but rather peace of mind or peace with God. A neat side-stepping of the issue I thought.

I then remembered a statement made by Dr. George Peck, then president of Andover Newton Theological School, who raised the question, “What would happen to the church if to be a Christian you had to be a pacifist?” I don’t believe I have adequately faced the question of pacifism for myself, but I often wonder. I have come to the conclusion that war doesn’t solve a thing, but only adds to the problem.

“Pray for the peace of Jerusalem?” How best to do that?

Let woe and waste of warfare cease,
That useful labor yet may build
Its homes with love and laughter filled:
God, give your wayward children peace.
- William Vories

- Robert Aspinwall

Click Here for Psalm 122

Today pray for:
First Free Will Baptist Church, Ashland and their pastor Ernie Madden
First Baptist Church, Barre and their pastor Craig Ray
Region Staff: Malcolm Hamblett, Asst. to the Region Minister

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March 3 - Psalm 121

2/28/2015

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One night, in heavy traffic on the highway, my grandson realized that he was “lost” and did not know how to reconnect with his friend in the lead car. He called his mother 1,000 miles away and asked for help. After many calls and research she got the two young travelers on the same route.

The question in verse1 was, “… from where will my help come?” For most of those “pilgrims,” the “holy hills” surrounding Jerusalem would be very visible in the distance, reminding them of the Temple and their God.
Israel’s history was already full of many accounts of God’s care and the wonders of God’s power and presence. With deep assurance, they proclaimed, “My help comes from the LORD who made heaven and earth.” That “help” was sure, complete and endless.

God often provides help through humans (see excerpt below); but there are times when God acts directly. In either situation, the prime mover is God. In most human beings there is a willingness to help, and the person who helps experiences some pleasure in doing so. Perhaps this could be called “The Common Grace of God” imparted by our Creator.

For Christians, the Bible is full of promises that God will help and sustain those who trust in God. Listen to Jesus’ words in John 14:15-16, “If you love Me, you will keep My commandment, and I will ask the Father and He will send you another Advocate (Helper) to be with you forever.”

We may proclaim with Israel, “Our help comes from the LORD, who made heaven and earth.”

(Excerpts from an Associated Press article: “A Michigan officer who pulled over a vehicle because a 5-year-old girl wasn’t secured in a booster seat decided that a ticket wouldn’t ‘cut it’. Instead, Emmet Township public safety officer Ben Hall bought her a seat. ‘A ticket doesn’t solve the situation…. It was the easiest 50 bucks I ever spent.’

“‘It changed my life,’ DeLorenzo said. ‘I’m never going to forget him, and neither will my daughter.’”)

- Philip Anderson

Click Here for Psalm 121

Today pray for:
Community Church of Alton and their interim pastor Sam Hollo
Grace and Hope Community Church, Andover, NH, a new church plant, & their pastor Karen Heavey
Antrim Baptist Church and their pastors Charlie and Cherryl Boucher

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March 2 - Psalm 120

2/28/2015

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We are cross-wired with the world. That’s a fundamental truth we must come to grips with if our ascent to God is going to be successful. We don’t think like the world, we shouldn’t act like the world, we can’t make our home in the world. The old hymn says it best: “I’m just passing through.”
This causes us no end of trouble for the time we are here. We are continually being tempted to follow the world or enticed to move away from God. We are constantly barked at to get in line and be a loyal citizen, but we can’t.

The lies of the world are devastating. They tell us that each of us is the ruler of her own life; that each is the master of his own destiny. Yet God tells us differently. He says that the “Master of the Universe” position has already been filled – and not by any of us! The world tells us the lie that the worth of any life is measured by how much we own, by who we can push around, by how many people we can get to do what we want. God tells us differently. He says that the servant is the greatest and then dies in our place to prove the truth of it.
No wonder the psalmist cries to God “save me from lying lips and a deceitful tongue.” Is not our discipleship an ongoing battle with the world? We are put in the position where we must daily, even minute by minute, fight the battle to choose God and God’s way.

If we try to fight this battle by ourselves, we will get cut to pieces, but God has given us help. He comes along side us and he gives us fellow battlers help so we are never in it by ourselves, unless we foolishly choose to go it alone. We can call on God and He answers us. That’s really all we need to know as we step out into the world to begin or continue our journey to God. When the Jews began their trek to Jerusalem for a festival they would sing these Psalms (120-134). This has been the beginning for a long time: I’m in trouble in the world, but you will come to my aid.

It won’t be easy; God never lies to us saying it will. We and the world are on opposite tracks, going in different directions. We move toward shalom, the world toward destruction. Sometimes it is frustrating to be in the world and fighting the current. Sometimes we would rather just quit and go with the flow, but when we stop to consider what that means, we find the peace God has placed inside us calls more strongly to us than the world does.

So, we turn to face God and continue our trek with him. Join voices with your fellow travelers and sing the Psalms of Ascent as we begin our journey to the ABC/VNH Annual Meeting on May 1 and 2 in Rutland, VT. Here we are, Lord. We are coming!

- David Doyle

Click Here for Psalm 120

Today pray for:
United Church of Acworth and their pastor Joel Eaton
Addison Community Baptist Church and their pastor Stephen Payne
Region Staff: Dale Edwards, Region Minister

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60 Days of Prayer

March 8 - Psalm 126

March 7 - Psalm 125

March 6 - Psalm 124

March 5 - Psalm 123

March 4 - Psalm 122

March 3 - Psalm 121

March 2 - Psalm 120

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